


Counting tomatoes

by SpadesDame



Series: RomaSpa Mpreg Drabbles and One-shots [5]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Mpreg, Pregnant!Spain, abdominal breathing, tomatoes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-01-26
Updated: 2013-01-26
Packaged: 2017-11-27 00:48:17
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,657
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/656157
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpadesDame/pseuds/SpadesDame
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Lovino tries to help Antonio relax by using a technique he read about thinking that perhaps it should help. Only that's not always the case with Antonio...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Counting tomatoes

“Alright,” Lovino proclaimed, smoothing out the covers on each of his sides while tucking them both in “Are you okay? Comfortable?” He pushed his arms underneath Antonio’s, who was currently nestled between his legs with his back propped up against his husband’s chest. Lovino rested his hands on Antonio’s stomach, palms pressed against warm cotton, fingers splayed. He let his head drop forward, tucking his chin in the crook of Antonio’s neck as the Spaniard leant his head back to let his fall on Lovino’s shoulder. He hummed in contentment, indicating that he had heard him.

The Italian planted a kiss to the other’s temple, letting out a sigh of relief. Antonio had insisted on helping him clean up after dinner despite all of Lovino’s protests that he could do it just fine on his own and that he should go sit down and not strain himself. What he had gotten instead was Antonio gripping the counter and just as he stood there, breathing raggedly only a few moments later. He hadn’t known if he should yell at him or hug him close so he just settled for bringing him to the bedroom slowly, after he had calmed down, deciding to test out some relaxation methods. Those damn books had to be good for something if he had spent so much time reading them, dammit! So he had propped the Spaniard against him, as an upright position was supposed to relieve pressure to his whatever-the-hell and let him breathe better… or something…

Yeah… anyway! That book –that he had somewhere along the way stopped denying he had- also described some techniques to ensure relaxation. He should pick the most “harmless”, he decided.

“Alright,” he repeated. Why was he nervous, anyway? It was just Antonio. Wait, did he say nervous? No, that obviously couldn’t be it. He brought his left hand up to brush Antonio’s bangs back, pressing his lips to the other man’s hair as he spoke. “Close your eyes.” Antonio threw a sideways glance up at him, looking genuinely scandalized. Lovino felt the heat rise to his cheeks. “N-no, bastard. I didn’t mean it like that!” He pinched his arm and the Spaniard laughed, pushing his head back to take a better look at him.

“Well, I wouldn’t say no…” He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, only to have Lovino slap his palm against the Spaniard’s face, although not too forcefully and with a smile.

“Oh shut up.” He brought both his arms around him again and felt the baby push against his hand. “And close your eyes already, bastard.”  Antonio hummed and complied without protest this time. “Okay. Now I need you to relax. Relax and empty your head. Focus on breathing. In and out, like I told you. Here.” He indicated his belly by rubbing his thumbs in a circular motion. He let him do just that while a few seconds ticked by, feeling his stomach expand and contract rhythmically. “That’s it. Good. Now, I want you to imagine something… something red.” And he’d be damned if Antonio didn’t- “And don’t say tomato.”

“Why~ Lovi~ ?” He whined. “I want a tomato.”

“Okay. A tomato. Be it.”

“But you said I couldn’t say tomato.”

“Well, now I say you can.”

“But then why did you-”

“Ugh… Fine, dammit! Fine! It’s a tomato! I said so. God… Can we go on now?”

“Lo siento…”

“Just… just close your eyes. Where was I? Ah, si… Imagine something red, shiny red.” Antonio hummed and he rubbed his stomach, applying gentle pressure. “Now picture it as it changes color and goes gradually from red to orange, like the sun you take so great pride on. Now let it change again, from orange to yellow…”

“The tomato?”

“Yes.”

“But why would-

“Just go with it.”

“Okay.”

Lovino sighed and closed his eyes tightly for a moment, too tired to deal with the Spaniard. A Spaniard who had taken two naps during the day while Lovino had been running around the house like a madman. “As I was saying…” he continued because despite his tiredness he hoped that something might come out of this. That was, if Antonio decided to go with it already. “Let it change color, from orange to bright yellow.” Antonio scrunched his nose in distaste but said nothing and Lovino rolled his eyes. “Now it’s changing again. It’s becoming green,” he kept his voice down, above a whisper over Antonio’s ear and let a few breaths pass between each color. “and it darkens, gradually becoming blue-

“The tomato?!?” the Spaniard exclaimed, jumping slightly.

“Dammit Antonio I told you not to pick a tomato!”

“But then you said I could!”

Lovino opened his mouth but actually found he didn’t have anything to argue against that so he snapped his jaw closed again. He took a deep breath himself. “Okay, that’s enough.” He pushed himself backwards into the pillows to make room so that he could get up without having Antonio move too much.

“Wait, Lovi, no, I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to… Can we go again?” He looked at him hopefully, not because he actually found that little game interesting but because he probably took pity in him.

“No. You’re breathing now. And I am going to get you some milk.” He jumped down from the bed and made his way to the door. “Do you want anything else?” Antonio shook his head but the pouting didn’t cease. Lovino nodded pretending he hadn’t noticed. “I’ll be right back.” He exited the room but went back to lean into the doorway. “You stay right here, bastard.”

What did he expect anyway? He set to warm up some milk for Antonio and leant his him against the counter with his arms crossed over his chest while he waited. “Stupid,” he mumbled. That’s what he got for trying to help. Or, was he? What help could one possibly need for breathing. He felt the urge to slap himself only because Antonio wouldn’t do it for him, because he was always good and smiling and had gone with his stupid ideas because- Why had he gone with it in the first place?

Lovino let his hands drop to the counter and grip the edge of the wood tightly. This whole… situation they were in had made him even stupider, it seemed. And blinder. And like that wasn’t enough he was also going soft. He poured the milk in a mug, a red one, he noted, and turned off the stove and the kitchen light before heading to the bedroom.

“…I think your papa is upset with me,” he heard a murmur that was unmistakably Antonio’s voice. Then he heard a chuckle. “I know that he meant well… I didn’t mean to upset him… Do you think he’s disappointed? I hope not… Because he always takes the blame himself and it piles up inside and I don’t like it when he does that…” 

Lovino bit his bottom lip, a small smile breaking over his face. Yeah, perhaps he was going soft, and maybe he was even stupider than before but this idiot was his idiot so he must be worth some shit at least.

“Do you think my magic charm will be able to cheer him up?”

Lovino shook his head and walked inside the room, where the image of the Spaniard sitting right where he had left him, with his legs crossed and tucked under him as best as he could, rubbing and poking at his stomach with a smile. His actions ceased when he entered and he turned to look at him, eyes big and green and honest.

“Idiot,” he murmured as he crawled over the bed to kneel in front of him, placing the mug on the nightstand before cupping his face and kissing him, gently, and with no pressure to dominate him even when they deepened the kiss and Antonio’s tongue was pushing against his because there’s never been a charm. It’s always been _him_ , simply _Antonio_ who was able to make him get his head out of the gutter.

“You’re not mad?”

“No, tesoro, I’m not mad.” He touched his lips to his forehead, leaning back to rest his weight on his ankles, taking one of Antonio’s hands in his. He let out a sigh, examining the pattern on the duvet. “It was just an experiment. It didn’t work. That’s okay. I’d rather have it not work here than in a more… urgent situation.” It was true that while the time for the birth came nearer everything became a little bit more real. So, yes, he’d rather fail now than when that time came. He shook his head and ruffled Antonio’s hair once before getting up to shed his clothing. “Now go ahead and drink your milk before it gets cold.”

Antonio ginned and reached for the mug, eyes fixed on Lovino, following every piece of clothing that was discarded, taking in all the familiar plains of skin that were revealed. If there were some habits of Lovino’s that he was glad about, then surely his sleeping naked was definitely one of them. He rushed to gulp the milk down, not allowing himself to register the taste, to wiggle out of his own pants moments later and crawl under the covers. He held the side open for Lovino and he slipped inside. He laid on his back and stretched out his arms in an invitation that Antonio couldn’t possibly refuse, resting his head against his love’s chest, curling around him on his side, with Lovino’s right arm around his shoulders and the fingers of his left joined with Antonio’s right.

“Lovi?”

“Hmm…”

“Now I want a tomato…”

Lovino’s eyes snapped open and he let out a frustrated sigh, burning holes in the ceiling with his eyes, thinking that he was never again allowing the man more naps than his regular siesta. It was going to be a long night…

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, I actually did some research, both yesterday and today on the discomforts of pregnancy and what-not. The technique Lovino attempts to use is called "The Rainbow" and it is supposed to be one of the techniques that can be used for relaxation during birth. Also, here Antonio would be around the 8 months in and one of the common discomforts around that time is being sort of breath. From what I read, in cases like that some of the most simple things that help are resting, abdominal breathing and sitting in an upright position. So, there. And the milk is not random, either. Because of a number of reasons, relaxing and going to sleep is difficult to pregnant women during the last months (backache, shortness of breath, indigestion and bladder issues being some of them). 
> 
> Also, about 3 fics more I said? Well, scratch that. There's more nonsense coming your way after all of this research. 
> 
> What I intended to write was the scene with the colorful tomato because what was what popped into my brain when I read the example on that website and it went from red to orange to yellow etc. Then I guess I got kind of carried away after that. Oh well...


End file.
